Top 10 Frontpoint Features You May Not Use – Or Be Aware Of!

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One of the advantages of a Frontpoint system is that the features and capabilities just keep on getting better. We are all about increasing your sense of security, and your convenience, so it makes sense for us to continue offering enhancements as the technology evolves.

For end users, it can be a challenge keeping up with the improvements. That’s why we are offering this selection of what we think are the Top 10 Frontpoint features that you may not use – or be aware of. It’s a great set of benefits for you – and even if you only add a couple of these items to your to-do list, you’ll be happy you did.

Customer portal.
This important enhancement was just released in mid-January, and it’s already getting rave reviews. Once logged in to your system, use the new “My Account” tab on the far right. Now you can change all sorts of personal info, and even perform some account functions, without calling us. For example, you can update your security passcode, emergency contact numbers, credit card information, and even your billing and shipping address. Plus, we’re not done yet: look for more portal features to be added later this year.

Notifications.
Notifications have been around for a long time, but they are highly underutilized. These are also accessed by a separate tab once you are logged in to your Frontpoint account. Want to know when doors open? When your home loses power – and gets it back? When there is an alarm activation? Or when the system is armed, or disarmed? All this activity (and more) can be sent to you and others by text or email – and all it takes is a walk through the simple setup process.

Thermostat control.
My wife loves this smart home feature, and uses it a lot. It’s pretty easy to find a Z-Wave thermostat these days, and we support most of them (but you may want to ask about our favorites!). The convenience of controlling the temperature in your home from your smart phone is amazing – and you can control multiple thermostats, if you have more than one in your home. You can even set up schedules remotely, and override a schedule if the need arises.

Linking lights to doors, alarms, etc.
With all these cool features and layers of technology available, it’s easy to forget that some of them can work together. For example, we have the system in our home programmed so that when the front door opens at night, two lights (upstairs and downstairs hallways) automatically go on. Yes, your Frontpoint system can do that. It’s the same technology that allows you to light a pathway out of the house, with plug-in Z-Wave lamp modules, if your system sounds a fire alarm: not just convenience, but safety, too!

New Smart Phone App.
The app provided by Frontpoint is powered by Alarm.com, the industry leader in this area, and our technology partner. While we are not the only alarm company to work with Alarm.com, we are one of their very largest partners – and this gives us some extra leverage. The new Frontpoint app is a good example: customized for Frontpoint, the app sports new graphics, and a simpler interface that you will find more intuitive. And there’s more to come: if you are a touchscreen user, the new graphics will be applied there as well.

Geo-fencing.
This is one of my favorites, because there are times when I forget to do important things – like arming my system. Geo-fencing is a feature for busy folks on the go, and provides an important reminder to you if you leave home without arming your system. You get to set the distance from home where you receive the reminder, specific to the tenth of a mile: when you reach that distance from home, the system will send you an arming reminder. Then, just use the Frontpoint app to arm remotely.

Changing sensor names.
It’s surprising that more people don’t take a few minutes to rename their sensors. Since we don’t know where each sensor will be placed, we encourage you to change sensor names from the generic sensor descriptions used when your system was originally shipped to you. After all, “Back Door” is much better than “Door Window Sensor Number 1!” Setting up your own customized sensor names is a very easy process, and the benefits are plentiful: you will know which sensor is being activated, and so will we.

Voice chimes.
This item is a logical extension of the one just mentioned. Once you have your sensors named, you can easily change the door chime feature from a generic door chime tone to the actual name of the sensor – i.e. “Front Door” – so you will know which door is being opened. It’s a great feature – and once you set it up, you’ll appreciate knowing more about what’s happening in your home.

Sensor bypass feature.
Of course, there are those times when you go to arm your system, but there’s that one sensor that you want to leave out of the mix – or “bypass.” For example, you may want to leave a window with a sensor slightly open, or let your large dog roam in a part of the house where there’s a motion sensor. And your Frontpoint system can easily handle those situations. Your User Manual tells you how to accomplish this: or, just send us an email (or give us a call), and we’ll walk you through it. You be surprised how easy it is!

Linking multiple Frontpoint accounts.
One of the great advantages of interactive services is the ability to protect and monitor your home remotely, and that is especially relevant for second homes. More and more Frontpoint customers have a system in two locations, and we make that easy to manage: just on login to the app, and you can see (and control) each system separately. You can even set this feature up on your own – and it’s much simpler than it used to be.

We hope this list is useful to you, and encourage to get as much as you can out of your Frontpoint system. Alarm technology has come a very long way in the last ten years or so, and will continue to evolve. And we plan to stay on the forefront of the improvements, providing more and better ways to protect and connect with your home. Thanks for reading.

Comments (86)

Milt

I was given a demo by Vivint. I was very impressed. They offer a huge range of home automation devices. Best part is that even if you choose to not pay the monthly service for the security service, all devices continue to work, including cameras, lights, thermostats, etc. AND can continue to be controlled remotely. With Frontpoint, I am required to continue paying for service, and I have to pay for the most expensive one in order to have access to my cameras and thermostats remotely. Makes no sense. Really thinking about switching providers. Frontpoint was great early on as they were one of the first wireless systems, but other companies are leaving them behind with home automation. Aside from that, tech support has been great each time I’ve called.

Steve

Katie Rynex

Great question Steve! You are able to disable the chime feature and we will have one of our Support Specialist reach out to you to assist with this. Thank you for reaching out and we look forward to speaking with you soon!

Annette Lancaster

Katie Rynex

Annette, your Amazon Echo will integrate using Alarm.com. We are going to have one of our Support Supervisors reach out to you to help you set this up. Thanks for reaching out to us and we look forward to speaking with you soon!

Katie Rynex

CM

When will you have new control panel sensor names available? Your current choices are very limited, there’s not even a Kitchen option. I imagine that I’m not the only customer with a Kitchen door or window.

Katie Rynex

CM, great question! We are happy to tell you that you can update your control panel sensor names on your MyFrontpoint website. There is a larger list of names to pick from which do include Kitchen options. If you need any help setting these names up, please don’t hesitate to give our Support Team a call, as they would be more than happy to help you!

Caydence James

I came here because I’m in the market for an alarm system and I’m trying to make a choice between Frontpoint and 2 other alarm security systems. I was hoping against hope that Frontpoint could be used with my Amazon Echo because that’s important to me. Although Frontpoint has a reputation for great customer service and a variety of features, I think the lack of an Echo interface has pushed me towards another security alarm company with a similar reputation.

Justin Clevenger

Miraflor E.

Along with Jeff P., I would like to see the addition of Fire, Police, and Medical panic buttons to the mobile app. The addition of Alarm.com’s Stream Video Recorder (SVR) would also be great as I would like all of my cameras to be recording 24/7.
I would also like to know if I am able to receive the new, updated V521IR Indoor Camera in exchange for my V520IR Indoor Camera. It would be nice if I am able to receive the new camera, returning the old one.
Would I have to pay for the V521IR or could I just return my V520IR to your company’s address without paying for the V521IR camera?
Thank you very much for continuously advancing in your technology and protection!

Ted

I understand that the new control panel does not support the existing additional control panel but why can’t Frontpoint make it so it support multiple control panels? We have a control panel upstairs and I would love to upgrade to the new control panel but you can only use one panel.

I second the comments on Alexa, for once in 4 years since I’ve had Frontpoint security I am looking at the Honeywell Lync touch system that support Alexa.

Katie Rynex

Lucas, at this time we do allow integration of Echo with your system. However, our product team is still testing the compatibility of IFTTT and will let all of our customers know if and when this becomes available. If you would like to have some assistance with learning in your amazon echo, feel free to reach out to our Support Team and they will gladly assist you. We hope this was helpful!

Katie Rynex

Maria, your Amazon Echo will integrate using Alarm.com. We are going to have one of our Support Supervisors reach out to you to help you set this up. Thanks for reaching out to us and we look forward to speaking with you soon!

Katie Rynex

Thanks for reaching out Anthony! At this time we do not have a date for compatibility with this product. If and when this does become available, we will let you and all of our customers know. We hope this was helpful!

Barrett

I second this… the rate that home automation is developing and being integrated is already beyond frontpoint’s scope. People that hopped on this bandwagon for 3 years expected you to maintain high standards through the contract term. There are countless customers only staying based on the 80% cancellation fee and not based on your ability to provide the best available home security and automation. Locking customers into expired/severely limited technology is no way to make friends. Seriously… taking this long to integrate is unacceptable.

Dan

Ken R

This! IFTTT support is mandatory these days with so many other devices/services interacting with others. Echo support would also be a great addition with so many sold. At this rate FP will be outdone by competing company that offer more standard features such as this with the explosion in home automation again.

Jon Dugan

I love the new customer portal, but I do have a small issue. I have 2 systems installed at different locations. I can only change account settings, billing, emergency settings, and account documents for my main account since I log in to both systems with the same user name and password.

Katie Rynex

Jon, we appreciate you reaching out as this definitely possible. Each account should have its distinct log-in credentials, even though you may be using the multi-system access function to manage both accounts from one log-in. You would need to completely log-out of your account and log in with each locations specific user name and passwords to edit the information for the different accounts. Hopefully this was helpful!

Jay

1.) Notifications for lighting. It would be nice to setup reminders if a particular light has been left on for a period of time.

2.) Lighting Awareness – Is there a way to see which of my lights are currently on? Right now I can only turn on or off the device, but I can never tell whether it’s on or off when I initially open the phone app or the web portal.

Katie Rynex

Thank you for the feedback Jay! We will take these thoughts in to consideration. Also, you are able to see which light is on or off as the current status button will be “depressed” on the screen. Hope this was helpful!

Mallory

James Drew

Why didn’t you respond to this follow up question (below)? Was it because our system is vulnerable?
Katie, that sounds impressive but without added detail doesn’t mean very much. My main question was still not answered – are the wireless communications between sensors and the control panel encrypted in a Frontpoint system? I can probably find the answer myself if I research the equipment, but I thought it might be easier to ask Frontpoint first… Thanks.

Daniel Thomson

Marnel Scott

I’very been reading about garage door controllers and saw on alarm.com that it supports liftmaster/chamberlain myq systems, however when I talk to a frontpoint service specialist they are unaware of this. Can you you clarify this for me? I want to add one of these systems to my frontpoint panel and alarm.com account.
Thanks

Katie Rynex

Marnel, the liftmaster garage door controller is compatible with your system, however, we do not currently support it. This means that if you were to add this sensor into your system, our Support Team would not be able to offer any guidance or support if something were to ever happen to it. We hope this answers your question and ask that you please let us know if you have any other questions going forward!

claire

Katie Rynex

Claire, you can always set your Control Panel to the voice chimes from your MyFrontpoint.com account or you can give our Support Team a call and they will be happy to help turn those voice chimes on for you. Thanks for reaching out and please let us know if you ever need anything else!

Luis

Joe

I saw in the news today about a major security vulnerability involving a well-known Home Security System provider, that may affect up to 300,000 people. The vulnerability is enabled by unencrypted wireless communications between the sensors and control panel in the home. The article alluded to other wireless security systems also having this same issue. Are the wireless comms between sensors and the control panel in a Frontpoint system encrypted? If not, how do we know this system is not susceptible to the same problem?

Katie Rynex

Joe, the wireless communications in our Frontpoint systems work off of a retired military frequency so your system is less likely to be vulnerable to these types of issues. We hope this answers your question and ask that you please let us know if you have any other questions going forward!

Joe

Katie, that sounds impressive but without added detail doesn’t mean very much. My main question was still not answered – are the wireless communications between sensors and the control panel encrypted in a Frontpoint system? I can probably find the answer myself if I research the equipment, but I thought it might be easier to ask Frontpoint first… Thanks.

Jeff P

Are there any plans to add the Fire, Police and Medical panic buttons to the iPhone app? If one is upstairs or in a remote area of their home and can’t get to the console due to fire or a medical issue they cannot activate the system. Since the phone and the app uses GPS that could disable those buttons when away from the home to prevent them from being accidentally selected.

Editor

The next time I learn a blog, I hope that it doesnt disappoint me as much as this one. I mean, I do know it was my choice to read, however I actually thought youd have something inietesrtng to say. All I hear is a bunch of whining about something that you may fix when you werent too busy on the lookout for attention.

Alexa

Adam

Scott McWilliams

I like a lot of the features from Frontpoint, but the new IQ console interface is terrible: all light grey icons with a grey background. For people who are visually impaired or hard of seeing in general, the previous version with green and red icons was MUCH easier to use. Why can’t we have color in the 21st century?

M.Bell

Phyllis Hanvey

My son with intellectual disability cant remember how to disarm the system. Sheriff came out two days ago when I forgot to disarm the system and he got home early from his sheltered workshop The system is really not working for us

Martin

Valerie Saponara

Martin, in order to walk you through this process we would need to explain several steps, so to avoid miscommunication we’re going to have one of our Support Specialists reach out to you shortly to help you turn on those chimes.

Kris Turner

I have renamed my sensors, and can get the unit to tell me which one is open when I hit status, however, it still just beeps when a door is opened. How can I get it to tell me what door it is when someone opens a door?

Valerie Saponara

Harry Allen

I would like to be able to set up at least a couple of lights in my home, when we go South for the winter, that could be set to come ‘on’ at a set time and then ‘off’ at a set time each day. The (set) time should be a variable time, within limits, with a “Security” designation. That way the lights would not come on at a precise time which would be obvious to a potential burglar. All of this should be able to adjusted away from home by computer or cell phone.

Valerie Saponara

Harry, what you’re describing is definitely something we can setup for you using our AC Light Modules. Please let me know if would like me to have someone from our Support Team reach out to you with more information on those!

Meet the Team

Katie has served in multiple roles in Frontpoint’s Customer Relations department, including serving as a mentor for new Customer Support Specialists, before joining the Reputation Team. She has a knack for explaining how to use a system without confusing even the biggest technology novice.

Peter has more than 20 years of home security experience; including leadership positions at some of the country’s most prominent alarm companies. He’s been sharing tips and industry knowledge on the company blog since 2010.

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